News Article

Rental Assistance A Better Option For Urban Areas Hit By Sandy

By Katie Colaneri, WBGO News
Hoboken. November 9, 2012

The government is moving mobile homes into the areas hit hardest by Hurricane Sandy. But that may not be the best solution for the dense, urban areas affected by the storm.

Ed Smith is a Senior Policy Advisor for FEMA who’s working on the ground in Hoboken. He says trailers aren’t a good option in cities where there are few places to park them and, in Hoboken’s case, they could even be susceptible to flooding in a bad storm.

Whether you’re in the city or the suburbs, Smith thinks rental assistance programs are the best solution.

“Because we can not only put people safe and secure housing, but we can help the economy in that area as well.”

FEMA has upped the amount of rental assistance it’s giving out by 25 percent because of the high cost of living in the New York Metro Area. But it’s still not enough to fully cover the cost of most rental units.

Smith says that’s not FEMA’s job.

“We’re not here to make people whole. We’re here to provide a temporary fix so people can get off the streets.”

Newark Today

A monthly, one-hour, live call-in program focusing on social, economic and political topics pertaining to Newark.

Black History is American History. On the February episode of Newark Today, we talk about where we've been -- and where we're going -- with former Newark Mayor Ken Gibson and current Mayor Ras Baraka. Plus long-time activist and community organizer Larry Hamm.

Conversations with Allan Wolper

Sam Schwartz is known worldwide as Gridlock Sam, a nickname the media gave him for his role in coining the term, Gridlock. As New York City's traffic commissioner in the 1980's, he designed transportation plans for numerous crowded corners across The Big Apple. He is a columnist for New York's Daily News, where he reminds motorists whether they are tempting fate and a traffic ticket by parking on the wrong side of the street. His company, Sam Schwartz Engineering, devised the transportation plan for the Barclays Center in Brooklyn and the trolley system in Aruba.

SportsJam with Doug Doyle

Two of host Doug Doyle's students at Bloomfield College are stars in their respective sports. Senior Guard Marvin Williams has become the fifth player to ever score 1500 points there, while Sophomore Elizabeth Meyer made her presence felt on the front line of the women's volleyball team.